Owner of £18m flat wins court fight over lack of concierge staff at block
A FINANCIER has won a court battle after complaining about the concierge service at his apartment block.
Iouri Chliaifchtein, 60, argued that staff cuts at the Knightsbridge building had led to security fears and guests being stranded outside. He said the decision to have one concierge on duty at night and most weekends meant couriers could not deliver parcels and there were times when no one was free to drive his car to the front.
Mr Chliaifchtein, the director of an investment firm, and three neighbours took the management firm to court, arguing for a reversal of the cuts. Tycoon Simon Arora, whose family own three flats there, opposed this, arguing that Mr Chliaifchtein was being “completely unreasonable”.
But Judge Nigel Gerald, sitting at Central London county court, agreed that two staff should be on duty at all times. He ruled that cutting the staff had breached the lease, meaning the management firm will have to foot an estimated £320,000 legal bill.
The judge noted that the money spent on the dispute could have bankrolled the concierge service weekend and night shifts for up to five years.
At least two members of staff were on duty 24 hours a day when Mr Chliaifchtein bought a 999-year lease on his £18 million flat in the Grosvenor Crescent block, but a decision was taken to cut back in April 2015.
The management firm conducted a straw poll of leaseholders by email beforehand, but Mr Chliaifchtein argued that the decision had not been unanimous. Judge Gerald said: “It is self-evident from the £15 million to £34 million price tag of the various apartments that they were designed for and marketed to extremely wealthy people who, when they pay that type of price, would expect the nature and standard of services provided to be of the highest standard.”
He said having one concierge meant the block’s 42 CCTV cameras were not always monitored and its entrance system was not staffed 24 hours a day. Guests, couriers and residents who had forgotten their keys could be left waiting outside for up to 30 minutes if the lone member of staff was on a break. The judge said: “So far as security is concerned, it seems to me that Mr Chliaifchtein was perfectly entitled to be as concerned as he was.”
Edward Denehan, for the management firm, said it would abide by the ruling. A tenant with an £18 million flat in the block told the Standard: “I think the right man won.”